Ian Holloway salutes Swindon supporters after dramatic victory over Bradford

Swindon boss Ian Holloway was full of praise for the fans after they roared their team to a dramatic 5-4 win over 10-man Bradford at the County Ground.

Calum Kavanagh’s hat-trick put the Bantams 3-1 ahead inside 35 minutes but Richie Smallwood’s early dismissal proved crucial as Swindon hit back to level before Jack Shepherd’s stoppage-time own goal.

Holloway said: “The supporters made me proud. No one moaned when we were two down with a terrible start like that.

“That’s a difference that allowed me to do things, allowed the lads to not go too deep and then believe we could score.

“The lads have earned that but the fans still had to do it and that was massive to them.

“We let two goals in against 10 men, which is normally a no-go for us managers, but we’ve ended up winning and kept our good run going.”

The visitors went ahead after just six minutes when Kavanagh jabbed home from Brad Halliday’s long throw.

The Bantams doubled their lead four minutes later as Kavanagh poked home after the ball fell into his path following a mix-up at the back.

But Smallwood’s vicious lunge on Paul Glatzel saw the defender receive a straight red in the 14th minute.

Town made the most of it when Billy Kirkman drove into the box and his low centre was touched in by defender Neill Byrne.

But Bradford restored the two-goal cushion when Town again failed to clear another Halliday long throw and Kavanagh snuck in to grab his hat-trick.

Town pulled a goal back just before the break after Kabongo Tshimanga slid in at the far post.

Harry Smith then levelled with an emphatic finish in the 62nd minute only for Halliday to slot home a rebound to put Bradford back in front.

However, Smith equalised again with a far-post header before Shepherd’s botched clearance gifted Swindon a stunning win.

Bantams boss Graham Alexander, who was shown a yellow card after protesting Smallwood’s dismissal, was left bitterly disappointed.

He said: “I’m just really gutted for the players and the supporters that we didn’t win that game, when we should have won that game.

“Two-nil up, you know what we’re like when we’re in that position, our record is phenomenal. But it’s gone against us.”

But Alexander looked on the bright side as he praised their attitude after the sending off.

He added: “The spirit and the commitment of the players – even when it went to 3-3 with 10 men – other teams I think would have buckled at that point but we go up the other end and we score another goal.

“The endeavour and the team ethic of these players is frightening at times but unfortunately we could not see it through to the end.

“I am always proud of these players.”